WootBot

I play video games. A lot. More often than a grown man should, I'll admit. I still have nagging doubt and self-loathing instilled in me by my parents for wasting time playing video games, but that's me. The point is I play a lot of stuff and I spend more time than I'll admit reading about upcoming releases and the like. So naturally, when the new Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 trailer was released, I was interested to see what was featured:

If you're like me, I know exactly what you're thinking after watching that:

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWN.

I get it, I really do. Violent games, particularly First Person Shooter games, satisfy some kind of aggression center in our tiny simian brains. Before I start bashing Black Ops 2 I have to admit I own the first one, as well as Modern Warfare 2 and 3, Battlefield 3, Brink, Halo and Halo 2, and other more forgettable versions of the same game with a different coat of paint: point at bad guy, click "fire" button, repeat. So I'm not here to say FPS games are stupid or worthless or anything crazy like that.

I'm just saying I'm kind of sick of them.

Part of my problem is I only play games on a console. This is due in part to my wife drawing a line in the sand at the amount of electronic time wasting stuff I'm allowed to bring into the house (I only have my Xbox because she waited 'til the last minute one Christmas, felt terrible for not having a gift, and went way overboard to compensate). So my gaming options are a three year old MacBook (on which I can just barely eek through a game of Civilization V), the Xbox 360, and my iPhone. I'm not trying to start a debate about PCs versus consoles, but I will say that the keyboard/mouse combo allows for another level of dexterity and complexity of input that a console controller just doesn't, so you don't see a lot of involved, intricate games on consoles. They tend to be more straightforward, "shoot that thing" affairs.

But is it too much to ask for some innovation in games? Feel free to suggest titles, because I'm sure I'm missing a bunch, but every time I hear about a new "groundbreaking" game it either A) falls short of what it promises (Spore), B) has Peter Molyneux's name associated with it, or C) both. I'm not asking for a lot, just a game that grants me unlimited, omnipotent control to create a universe and seed it with life, then watch it grow and evolve as I interfere with benevolent blessings or malevolent disasters and curses so that the creatures eventually evolve sentience and worship me under myriad names and religions while I ignore them to go start a new world.

Can we make that game? And can we put it on a console? I think I have this power trip fantasy because in real life I'm not allowed to buy a computer for myself.

Are you an FPS fan excited for the new Black Ops? What kind of game would YOU make if you knew how? Let us know in the comments!

nparus

I would make a game where I can launch Angry Birds and other weapons of choice through the little talk hole in my window. That way, everytime a customer licks their finger before ripping out a check and handing it to me I can pick off the the finger before it gets to their mouth and do it in the name of good hygiene.

glibdud

I've never owned a non-Nintendo console, so I won't pretend I understand what it's like to be tired of shooters. (Although there are a few decent ones available for PC, like Left 4 Dead.) I do play my share of MMOs, though, and currently Eve Online is my time sink of choice. I mention it because their upcoming Dust 514 is supposed to bridge the PC-MMO/console-shooter gap. From the few leaked beta gameplay videos I've seen, it looks like it has potential. It'll add a layer of politics and organization to the shooter fare. Of course, in the end, it's still Shoot That Thing.

abitterwoman

Personally, I love most video games, including FPS. My favorite is Halo, but I agree-I think we are all starting to tire of the same ol' thing with new maps or a few new guns tossed in. Still, there is something satisfying about killing a stranger ten times (or until he ragequits) who made the mistake of teabagging you...but I digress. I am just not sure how much longer my interest can be held with virtually nothing new about these "new" releases.

I actually never played Call of Duty more than a couple of times until the commercial for Black Ops came out and got me totally psyched. I'm talking about this one. I played it for hours on end with my boyfriend and we loved it. MW3, on the other hand, has been a disappointment. We just can't get into it. And I feel like I am one of the few who can get into Halo Reach.

I hope Black Ops 2 will be at least half as good as Black Ops (and I mean multi-player-wise), and I REALLY HOPE Halo 4 will restore some of the former glory of Halo 2.

Otherwise, there are a ton of other games out there I enjoy, including console, PC, handheld and etc.

PS- Glibdud, I think Black Ops 2 will be for Xbox 360 also. Where did you read it wouldn't be?

Listen2Reason

What you describe would be a great game. In the meantime, you might give Dwarf Fortress a shot. There's a version that runs on...Intel-based Macs, I think? It has a definite learning curve, but if you can get into it, it's rewarding. ;)

EDIT: Also, nowadays we have an "indie game scene", much like indie film, you know. For example, the recent Ludum Dare game making event just happened; a bunch of people made games, which are now being reviewed and judged. A lot of them are made with Flash or Unity, so they're playable in pretty much any web browser!

dzeiger

Well, you're about to be able to get Minecraft for the 360. That should certainly fit the "shape the world as you want" concept, though you are not omnipotent by any stretch...*hiss*..OMGItsACreeperBOOM

dougwithau

After a while all games become Simon. I heard that in a Stack overflow pod cast and it ruined games for me forever.
If you don't know what Simon is, move on and continue to enjoy your gaming experience. If you do, I am sorry.
Even 3D rendered first person shooters become a follow the path, repeat the steps, and you can survive exercise.
Playing online against real opponents is better, people are random.

skemmis

Randy you must have missed SimGolf. It features all the elements you're looking for. Oh, but it's not on console. Oh, and it's about building a golf course instead of all the crap you were talking about.

duke24m

All console shooters to me are just a yawn fest now days. Go in a room, kill enemies, go down a hallway, kill more enemies, cutscene, more enemies, hold off for a while killing more enemies, cutscene, hallway, cutscene, more enemies, cutscene, level ends.

Games, especially first person shooters, are trying to be too much like movies. They're getting less and less creative with the overall design of the game in turn it's making gamers dumber and dumber. Put a gamer that's played nothing but carebear FPS games now days in front of a game like Ultima Underworld or any old school game and they'll be lost the second they try playing it. Old school games didn't tell you what you're supposed to do or where to go. That's up to you to figure out. Games now days litter your screen with in-game hints and regenerating health. They're all the same now.

llandar

duke24m wrote:All console shooters to me are just a yawn fest now days. Go in a room, kill enemies, go down a hallway, kill more enemies, cutscene, more enemies, hold off for a while killing more enemies, cutscene, hallway, cutscene, more enemies, cutscene, level ends.

I agree completely. They've become too formulaic. I bought Battlefield 3 because I fell for the "Oh My Fruitful Garden TACTICS" hype everyone talked about, but at least on Xbox no one communicates and half my team spends the whole match spawn camping the helicopter so they can take turns crashing it into the side of a mountain.

robotaccomplice

I would totally do a remake of Spore; it has some great ideas, but its too silly and cartoony. Something a little more grown up, probably rated T, could really be a good game. Just lose the dumbing-down from Spore, add some better to use, less corny features, and expand each stage into a full game, not the half-baked mini-game affairs they are now.

saltone

Mass Effect 3 seems to be the next step in gaming, They have added the use of the Kinect Mic, and it is possible to bark commands as opposed to trying to using the controller. For instance you can just say "Ashley, Frag Grenade" and she will throw the grenade. i think that this is the first step into giving people more control over game play.

"What the hell are we doing fighting government, let's become government and we can then take whatever we want!".
Al Capone

DanAmrich

Sorry to see this take on the trailer, as Black Ops II is much more than the trailer. Check the deeper previews and you will see a lot of outlets impressed with the innovation -- seems the developers are tired of me-too FPS, too. Maybe this one isn't the one to yawn and ignore?

undermind9

llandar wrote:I have both Portal 2 and Limbo. Great games, but they've kind of run their course for me.

if its of any interest Portal 2 is releasing their "perpetual testing" patch in the next few days. essentially opening up a "map maker" for portal2 whereas people get to build, test, and subsequently share their own levels.

if stuck to XBox goodies id highly recommend Bastion for a fresh actionRPG story and artistic look (Diablo style, just no loot)

wolf1964

llandar

j5 wrote:Could you...under the guise of a home theater PC, build a halfway decent gaming rig?
(HTPC is the teets, btw)

This is the angle I'm hoping to take. I have an empty space on my entertainment center just BEGGING to be filled. If I can cram a Blu ray player in the box, then I'm just increasing our entertainment potential, right?

Have to wait until I have a spare grand or so to buy up parts. Maybe I'll do a blog series about trying to build my own PC (I can't even hang pictures correctly, so it sounds a little daunting even though everyone tells me it's easy).

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